


come back for me

by grumblebee_dani



Category: Original Work
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Gothic, Human/Monster Romance, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:41:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25123345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grumblebee_dani/pseuds/grumblebee_dani
Summary: Scarlett is the talk of the town, but she would much rather be left alone. Seclusion and her paints are the only friends she needs. That is, until she meets the man from the woods. She only ever sees him once the sun begins to set, but if she really needed him, all she would have to do is call out.
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

Scarlett sat on the edge of her bed, mending the hem of her mother's old dress. She wasn't sure what to do with the thing, it was much too bright for her eyes, but perhaps she could sell it. Though she had never been fond of the woman, she was grateful for the thick skin she had grown. It wasn't easy being the outcast.

Sewing had always calmed her nerves, but nothing could ever make her feel better than painting. Scarlett had loved it for as long as she could remember, and had at times been the sole breadwinner of the family after her father died. Too young to remember much of him, she loved him all the same, keeping a locket he had given her around her neck always.

Now she was well and truly alone. Mother and father gone, her childhood friend Carmen had been married two years prior and went to live with her husband. The small cottage on the outskirts of the village felt enormous. 

Scarlett spent all the time she could busying herself with sewing, painting, keeping up the house, and doing anything else to keep herself distracted from the ache in her heart. She had never considered how alone she felt until the feeling became her only reality. 

She had always preferred being outdoors, but she all but refused to paint inside. Having walls around her stifled creativity. Instead she went down to the lake, to the back roads leading away from the village, or to the woods for inspiration. She liked to feel the wind blowing her skirts and the sun on her cheek. 

This day was no exception. As soon as the mending was finished, Scarlett packed up her bag of art supplies and stepped outside to see where her whims would take her. It wasn't long before she was facing the treeline, dwarfed by the giant trunks standing before her like sentinels. Her mother had always warned her against going into the woods, but Scarlett thought it childish to listen to fairytales about the creatures that supposedly dwelled between the trees.

The shade was a blessing to her; she was overdressed as always. Scarlett prided herself on creating beautiful clothing for herself instead of hunting through shops for garments that could never compare. Her sense of style was too dark to have much luck with that anyway.

What little sunlight did peek through dappled the ground at her feet and caused her to only make it a short ways into the woods before stopping to sketch on the small canvas she had brought with her. Just as she was about to start mixing paints, there was a crunch from ahead like a leaf underfoot. Scarlett couldn't see anything, so she chalked it up to a woodland animal and went on with her work. Soon though, there was another crunch and what sounded like a whisper on the wind. If there was someone speaking, she couldn't make out the words. 

By the time she was done and letting the paint dry, there had been no other sounds. It was only as she crossed the treeline that she thought she heard a low rumble, as if some large beast was purring. Where her mother would have told her to stay away, Scarlett was determined to sate her curiosity.

The next afternoon, she went to the approximate spot from the day before and sat down on a fallen log to listen to the sounds of the woods. She was there for so long that she began to nod off, barely conscious as the wind whispered in her ear once again. Too far gone, she slept soundly until the sun had fallen in the sky and evening had settled in. Waking drowsily, Scarlett stretched and smoothed out her skirt. 

"Hello? Who has been whispering to me?"

To her complete surprise, a deep voice answered her query. 

"I apologize for not speaking plainly." 

He had a strange accent, one that did not fit the region, and the man seemed to materialize out of the shadows as he sat down in front of her. 

She sucked in a breath, taken aback not just by his existence, but by his beauty. He was tall and broad with jet black hair falling down to his navel like silk. He was not clothed in a way she knew, but he was covered nonetheless in what appeared to be moss and leaves. 

Seeing her expression, he chuckled. "Have I frightened you, my lady?"

Scarlett felt her face flush. "Ah-no! I..." There was nothing she could say to this man with confidence. "I am simply stunned, is all. I did not think I would receive a reply."

The man tilted his head, strands of thick hair falling away from his face, showing off his angular features. "You called for me, did you not?"

"Ah, well, yes. I suppose I did."

He smiled and took a step toward her, stopping when she hugged her knees in closer. 

"No harm will come to you when I am here." He placed his large hand over hers, covering it completely. "You have my word."

Scarlett peered up at him through long, dark lashes. "I don't even know your name." 

Her voice came out in a murmur, but he heard. "I am called Petrus. And you?"

"Scarlett." His hand was warm and she wished to have his arm around her.

As if sensing her thoughts, he slowly took her hands from her knees and pulled her close, sighing as she wrapped her arms around his middle.

"It has been so long since I have known the touch of another, Lady Scarlett."

She giggled nervously. "I am no lady, I'm afraid."

He looked down into her eyes in a way that made her feel as if she was drowning in green. "Maybe not to the people outside of these woods, but here you are royalty. I will see to that." 

Petrus scooped her up and carried her deeper into the darkness to a place she had never seen before. A nest of soft moss and leaves like the ones he wore took up an entire clearing, and he curled up there with Scarlett still in his arms.

"I do not wish to alarm you, but I have watched you every time you near these woods. You caught my eye and my heart with ease."

She had no idea how to take that in, but the warmth of Petrus and his nest soothed her emotions well. "I am intrigued by you, but I do not yet know what to make of all this."

He rumbled low in his throat, reminding her of the day before. "I do not ask anything of you in this moment, my dear. All I wish for is your safety and happiness. If that keeps you away from my loving embraces, so be it."

Stunned once again, Scarlett didn't realize she was crying until he was wiping her tears away with the gentlest of touches.

"Why do you cry, my dear? What have I done to hurt you so?"

She shook her head, curls bouncing around her neck. "It's not that...I..." She dissolved into tears once again, Petrus rubbing circles into her back to calm her. "I've never had someone speak to me this way."

He hugged her tighter, resting his chin on her head as she buried herself in his chest. "What a tragedy...please, my lady, allow me to remedy this."

He tilted her chin up so their eyes met again. "Let me show you what it means to be loved."

Sniffling, she nodded as she returned her cheek to his broad chest. 

She slept in his Petrus' arms that night, immune to the cold around them. His nest was large, but filled with enough softness to keep them warm. Having him as her personal heater helped too. Before even the first rays of sun lit up the sky, she woke to a feather-light kiss on her forehead. Her companion smiled down at her and she reciprocated, feeling more comfortable than ever.

"Good morning, my lady."

"Good morning, my Pet."

A strange look crossed his face and she held her palm to his cheek. "I'm sorry, I-"

He cut her off with a kiss to her fingertips. "It is quite alright, my love. I like the name...I just wasn't expecting you to bestow something like it upon me so soon." He looked nervous for a moment, vulnerable in a way she hadn't seen yet. "I know that I have adored you from afar for much longer than you have known me..."

Scarlett caressed his cheek with her thumb, enjoying the way he sighed and leaned into her touch.

"I do not understand the feelings I have for you, Pet, but I can't deny them. You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. I could paint your portrait a thousand times and never tire of your face."

He bowed down to touch his forehead to hers, pulling her into his embrace by her waist. "My love...you flatter me."

"Flattery is not so honest, darling." 

She nuzzled into him and slipped her arms around his neck to ease them both into a kiss. It was gentle, soft and sweet, lingering for a longer time than she had ever kissed someone.

"I worry that you will not be so accepting of my advances once you see me in a less desirable form."

Scarlett cupped his face in her hands. "What do you mean?"

Petrus closed his eyes. "I am not of your people. I am not of this place." He heaved a heavy sigh and cuddled up to her again. "I am from the North, where creatures such as I are common...respected even."

She ran her hands through his hair, hoping to comfort him. "Why did you leave?"

"I did not wish to...I was taken by a man who captured me when I was young and weak as a spectacle to be gawked at along the roadside."

Scarlett gripped his hand tight. "That's horrible."

"Yes, but I have learned to like these woods. Especially when they lure in a beauty such as you." He raised his head to smile at her. "You have no idea how you affect me, my dear. One look at you through the trees kept me up for days."

She rubbed the tip of her nose against his, wanting him closer, but not sure how to ask. "How did you get away?"

Petrus' eyes hardened, seeming to darken from green to black. "I escaped from my bonds and attacked my captor. Seeing the fear on the faces of his audience, I fled into these woods and have been here since. It was such a long time ago...I have not thought of that man for many years."

She kissed his nose, his cheeks, his forehead. "You never have to again. You are safe here."

He stared at her for a moment, eyes returned to an even more vibrant green. "You are right, my lady. I will always make this place safe. If not for myself, then for you."

Scarlett pressed herself as close to him as possible, wanting nothing more than to be touching him. "Thank you, Pet."


	2. Chapter 2

When Scarlett woke, early morning light made dust particles dance in front of her bedroom window. She had no memory of falling asleep or of Petrus taking her home. Despite the blankets and quilts on her bed, everything seemed colder without his warmth. 

She did not know why he had brought her home, nor how he knew where to take her, but she set side those questions to focus on her plans to see him again. She spent the morning baking and gathering supplies for a longer stay in the woods. Soon enough, a hearty meal was packed away in a basket along with a quilt and a book she thought Petrus might enjoy. Capping off a jar of lemonade, she set off for the woods.

Scarlett was not the type to give up easily, but her searching seemed useless. Petrus was nowhere to be found, and neither was his nest. She spent the entire first half of the day wandering the woods with her basket, calling out for him with no response except for the chirping of birds. Sitting down on a large rock, she sipped a bit of lemonade and pouted.

Weary of the day already, Scarlett went back home in a dour mood. She tried sleeping it off, but she woke with a lingering gloom mirrored by the rain outside. Taking her wares to Carmen's mother to be sold at the market kept her busy, but not distracted. All she could think of was the strange man in the woods.

By sunset, she was considering giving him the cold shoulder next time they met, but being petty never got her anywhere. Being the town oddball had taught her that lesson a few times over. As the last rays of light slipped under the horizon, Scarlett lit a candle and sat by the window to watch raindrops race down the window of her bedroom. It had been raining for hours with no sign of stopping and she thought of Pet and his unsheltered nest. He had been through plenty of thunderstorms before, but that didn't stop her worrying. 

Scarlett's worrying kept her up through the night, sending her images of Pet shivering and wet all alone in the darkened woods. Anything could happen out there, and she was overthinking herself into a mess. Sighing in defeat, she rolled out of bed to find her raincoat.

"Pet? Darling, it's me, it's Scarlett!"

A far away clap of thunder made her jump, and the howling wind quieted into a whisper. The same one as before with no distinct words. Still, it called to her. 

She could feel eyes on her back and turned around to bump right into Petrus.

"Oh! There you are!" She grabbed his arm and began pulling him in the direction of her cottage. "We've got to get inside before the thunder gets any closer."

He followed with obvious hesitation. "Why are you not inside already?"

She pushed dripping wet hair out of her face and huffed. "I couldn't sleep knowing you were out here in the storm, now come along."

If she had looked up she would have seen him smiling.

Back at her home, Scarlett fussed about trying to get both of them warm and dry. He let her do whatever she pleased, from toweling off his hair until it frizzed, to drinking a large cup of tea with honey. 

"What?"

Petrus tilted his head and kept looking at her. "Nothing."

"Why do you keep smiling at me like that?"

"I cannot smile at what makes me happy?"

Blushing, she stood in the doorway of her bedroom. "Nevermind. Just come lay down, you must be tired."

Obedient as ever, he laid on his back on one side of the bed while Scarlett draped her cardigan over a chair and got under the covers beside him.

"Don't you want the blankets over you?"

He seemed not to have considered that. Slowly, he lifted up each layer and slipped underneath. When he turned to face her, his eyes caught a bolt of lightning outside. 

She reached out to him, not really sure of what she was doing or why, and cupped his face in her hand.

"I missed you today."

Pet closed his eyes at her touch. "Forgive me, my love. I do not typically come out during the day. It is better for us all if I keep to the shadows."

She frowned and snuggled closer. "Not for me."

He ran his fingers through her hair in silence for a moment. "If the people of the village see me, they will be frightened."

"I wasn't."

He chuckled. "You are not like them. This is precisely why I was so enchanted by you in the first place."

Scarlett wondered if he could feel her blush on his chest. "So I can only see you at night?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

She thought about this, realizing that she had not once seen him in the sunlight. She also thought of a question that had been lodged in the back of her mind since the morning.

"How did you know where to take me after I fell asleep last night?"

Pet hummed low in his throat. "I simply followed your scent to where it was strongest."

She decided not to follow up on that.

"I'll meet you on the edge every night then. There's no reason for either of us to spend the nights alone, is there?"

He hummed again and curled his body even closer around her. "I suppose not." She could hear the smile in his voice.

She leaned in to kiss his neck, nuzzling into the warmth there. A purr rumbled from his chest and he rubbed his cheek against where it lay on the top of her head. It grew louder as she trailed kisses up his neck to his ear and nipped at the lobe, then continued along his jaw to his lips. If he had never been kissed this way, there was no indication. He turned into her advances and met her kiss with his own, letting it deepen until Scarlett moaned. Caught off guard, he pulled back.

"It's okay, Pet. Just means I'm enjoying myself."

She gave him a sweet smile that was more like a smirk and dove back in to claim his mouth once more. Relaxing into it, he let her set the pace, responding to her movements instead of taking the lead. Soon she was tugging down the top of her dress.

"Dearest, what are you doing?"

She stared at him quizzically. "I'm...undressing? Should I not?"

Just as an embarrassed blush began to creep up her cheeks, he swallowed hard and maneuvered her so she was straddling his lap. He tried to speak, but no sound would come out, so he resorted to peppering every inch of her bare skin with kisses.

A giggle escaped her lips, and she pushed his long hair away from his face so she could look into his eyes.

"Shall we finish what I started, darling?" Scarlett gestured to her exposed chest and traced her fingertips over the leafy coverings on his shoulders.

Nodding enthusiastically, he brushed them off with surprising ease; it had looked so dense and unmoving to her. Wriggling the rest of the way out of her clothes, she resituated herself on her lover's lap and rolled her hips against his. He let out a strangled moan that cemented her inference that he had never been touched this way.

Scarlett brushed her lips against his ear and whispered, "You can always tell me what you need...you can always say no."

Feeling him nod, she tangled her fingers in his hair and started rocking herself against his growing bulge. He growled something between a moan and a purr as she captured his lip with her teeth and his erection with her hand. Steadying her with fingers gripping her hips, Petrus watched in awe as she rubbed him against her wetness, sliding her thumb up and down his shaft while she prepared herself. For what, he didn't know until she raised herself up and slowly sank back down onto him. There was no holding back the guttural noises that escaped him, and each one was rewarded with another desperate kiss.

Scarlett needed some time to adjust to his considerable size, but after that she was bouncing happily. Petrus relished the way she called out his name like he was somewhere out in the woods. They would have found more privacy there, but he had a feeling they were not in danger of anyone deciding to drop in. 

She came hard with a cry, clenching hard enough to send him over the edge as well. When she sat back and let his cock leave her, he was fascinated by the way his seed spilled out of her.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Scarlett was giving him that satisfied smile again, and he couldn't help but return it.

"Very much so. I hope the same for you, my love." 

"Of course!" She slid off the bed and gathered up her clothes to dump them into a basket in the corner of her room. "Let's wash up."

From a pitcher in her nightstand, she wet a washcloth and wiped away any stickiness on their legs. Pet did his best to brush the remnants of his coverings off of the bed, but this only caused her to laugh.

"Here, let me get the broom."

When she came back with it, he refused to let her clean up the leaves and moss on the floor.

"I will not allow this to happen again, love, I assure you."

"It's fine, Pet, really." She gazed at him fondly, enamored by his strange formality. 

Once he was satisfied with his work, they both climbed back into bed to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: sexual assault  
> nothing actually happens, but it is implied 
> 
> tw: violence  
> not graphic at all, but it is mentioned

Despite her best efforts, Petrus insisted that he had to go back to the woods before sunrise. He was cutting it close, but Scarlett watched him disappear into the trees as the first bit of sunlight peeked over the clouds. 

Resigned to a day without him, she decided to go for a walk along the edge of town before starting on breakfast. She had just turned back toward her cottage when a local woman tried very hard jot to run full speed towards her.

"Sarah! Thank the gods I found you!"

She mentally rolled her eyes and kept walking. "It's Scarlett. What did you need?"

"Did you hear about that horrible thing in the woods?"

She stopped dead in her tracks, causing the woman to almost slam into her. Careful to keep her tone neutral, she replied, "No. I haven't."

"Well, Patience spotted this awful creature she said was like an enormous dog when she was out in her garden, and she told me as soon as she could. We've been running around warning people to stay away all morning!"

Scarlett had no evidence, but the sinking feeling in her stomach told her that Pet had to be the creature the woman spoke of. He was the only being in the woods she had ever seen that seemed out of place. 

"I do hope people stay away. It would be a terrible thing to have anyone try and seek it out. Who knows what could happen?"

The woman heaved a sigh. "Same here, Charlotte. Just come find me if you need anything."

And with that, she bustled off, her tone revealing that she was adding that last bit to sound nice. There was no way some upstanding citizen like her would want to be seen for more than a moment with the oddly private girl who dresses every day like she's headed to a funeral. 

Once she was alone, all Scarlett could think of was warning Pet. She hiked up her skirts and sprinted into the woods, calling out for him with much more urgency than the day before.

At the sound of the whispering wind, she caught her breath and called out once more, "Pet, someone saw you! You need to hide! Please just let me know that you heard this!"

The tree directly in front of her bowed forward and one of the branches brushed against her like a pat on the head. Reassured, she smiled tearily and ran her fingers along the bark before letting it straighten back up.

As soon as she left the treeline, however, there was a group of young men waiting there for her.

"Oi!" One of them shouted, "What're ya doing out there? You trying to get snatched up by that thing?"

 _Yes, actually._ Instead of voicing her thoughts, she clammed up like she would any time one of the more surly locals shouted at her. Picking up the pace, she hurried back toward her cottage.

Another man called out, "Oh no, you're not going anywhere!" He caught up easily and gripped her arm tightly. "Now you're gonna tell us what you were doing out in those woods, ya hear?"

Scarlett's eyes were wide as she mumbled, "I go through the woods to get home."

Technically true, but not good enough for the men.

"Not trying to see the beast?"

"You two might get along, though, whaddya say? Couple of freaks."

She struggled against her captor, but it was no use. She was smaller and unused to muscle-building activities. Straining her ears to hear any sign of Petrus gave her nothing. She was alone with these men, and she had no idea what they would do to her.

The first one piped up again, shaking her out of her thoughts, "Y'know, I dunno why we let you hang around anyways. Not like you're wanted here, witch." 

Another one laughed and slapped his friend on the back good-naturedly. "Yeah, I heard her own mother didn't even want her around. That's why she was always in the pub, ain't it?" 

He tilted her chin up to meet her eyes, but she shut them tight and refused to give him the satisfaction. Inside, she was hoping more than anything that Pet could sense her distress and scare the men away. She summoned every ounce of need in her body and mentally projected it into the woods. She was in no position to call out to him, so this was the only option she had. 

"What's the matter, sweetheart? Not enough fur and fangs for you?"

Wrenching herself out of the man's grip as best she could, she only managed to fall down and have a boot placed on her chest.

"Now listen here, if you want me to keep my touch light, you'll keep quiet and do as we say. Yes?"

Scarlett nodded and tried to keep her breathing from becoming hysteric. 

One of the men leaned over her. "Why don't we have some fun with the witch while we have her here?"

There was a chorus of rough laughs and jeers, and then a hand was on her skirts. She bit her tongue and wished for it to be over. Just as the thought crossed her mind, there was a gust of wind that pushed the men back. She scrambled away from them and into the trees, scared out of her mind, but grinning from ear to ear. He heard her pleas and he came for her.

Sufficiently deep in the woods, she looked back toward the town. She didn't have a good view of the men, but she could hear them scream as something gnashed and snarled. Flashes of dark fur and white claws were interspersed with splatters of bright red blood. Unable to keep watching, Scarlett turned away and tried to find her way to the nest.

She had only just laid down in the soft moss when faint whispers caught her ear and she sat up to see a large dark animal creep over the ridge.

"Hello, darling."

Petrus seemed almost apologetic as he slunk into the nest. Instead of curling around her like he usually would, he kept to the edge and whined out of a bone white muzzle. He was not like any creature she had ever seen, but he was big and soft and beautiful, just like his other form.

"Come here, Pet. You won't hurt me." 

Her soft words and outstretched arms coaxed him forward and she wound her hands into his fur with a sigh of contentment.

"Thank you."

He whined again and nuzzled his snout against her side.

"I knew you would come."

He paused for a moment before shrinking back down into the form she had come to recognize. Gathering her up into his arms, he buried his face in her hair and breathed her in.

"I will always come when you call."

The sun was high in the sky, and they were together in the nest he had built in the heart of the woods. 

Rubbing circles into his back, Scarlett mused, "I suppose I should finally leave this place."

Pet hummed. "Yes...I will go wherever you deem fit."

Smiling into his shoulder, she felt tears prick at her eyes. "We can find an even bigger forest. We'll make an even nicer nest and we'll be safe."

He kissed her cheek and pulled her down to lay on the soft earth. "Yes. We will."


End file.
